Sinopec shuts Guangzhou CDU for 20 days for environmental checks

China's Sinopec Corp <0386.HK> started shutting down a 104,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) crude processing unit at a subsidiary refinery in Guangzhou on Saturday, two industry officials said, in preparation for safety and environmental checks after state media reported on environmental problems.

The crude unit will be down for at least 20 days and the plant, Sinopec Guangzhou Petrochemical, has to divert at least one imported crude cargo into storage, one official with direct knowledge of the plant's operations told Reuters.

The official said Sinopec has yet to decide whether to shut down the whole Guangzhou plant after China's National Day holiday week that ends on Oct 7.

The plant, in capital city of southern Guangdong province, has a total crude processing capacity of 270,000 bpd.

(Reporting by Chen Aizhu; Editing by Ken Wills)